Apple doesn’t need to ‘kill’ the Mac to replace it

Please ignore the Wall Street Journal today. Apple has no need to “kill off” the Mac in order to increase its focus on future computing – the company responsible for the world of mobile computing we live in today is already focused enough on creating a better alternative.

Apple first

Apple’s iOS focus upsets some Mac users who feel it isn’t putting enough love into the desktop platform, but they’re missing the point. Steve Jobs nailed it when he famously said, computers will become “a truck” – Macs won’t disappear, but our interactions with them will simply shrink.

Look at how things are today. Enterprise and personal users regularly access cloud services for all manner of tasks using all kinds of devices, networks, applications and services. Information today is everywhere and nowhere. (Though some of the best creations of our digital generation could disappear if electricity were ever to run out, leaving no trace of our virtual lives).

The digital transformation is impacting every industry and every relationship on the planet. Technology is becoming environment-plus-context, inherent within everything.

Unshackled

The solutions you use are becoming device- and platform-agnostic and pervasive computing means your computing experience has been liberated from the desktop — some tasks are now as easy as a spoken word and a quick glance at an Apple Watch.

Think about the massive complexity of systems like Apple Pay – the technology, relationships and infrastructure that support payment with a tap or a swipe.

Apple has always been good at creating simple experiences that mask incredible complexity. This was its calling card with the iMac, iPod, iPhone and iPad. And it’s in the latter product you’ll see the emergence of the new Mac.

Eventually

New data from the AAPL dev underground tells us the current iOS 9 beta contains references to a bunch of much anticipated but still unannounced products, including an iPad Pro and Apple TV apps. One big clue is iOS 9’s inclusion of a new and larger iPad keyboard that only makes sense if deployed on a larger iPad model.

Apple has been expected to introduce an iPad Pro for some time. This solution will offer a selection of powerful productivity tools within a highly mobile form factor – for many tasks (particularly in the mobile enterprise) the iPad Pro will be all a person needs.

All the same, for many tasks Macs will remain the very best possible computing device for decades to come, not least for the development of new iOS apps. That’s what Jobs meant when he talked about “trucks.”

However Apple’s incremental move to deliver feature parity between iOS and OS X and its continued improvement to its ARM-based processors does suggest its possible the dual platforms will become one platform at some point.

Worn with pride

As cloud, OS and software improves, one day you’ll wear your Mac. There’s no need to kill it, the platform is already transforming right before our eyes.

Google+? If you use social media and happen to be a Google+ user, why not join AppleHolic’s Kool Aid Corner community and join the conversation as we pursue the spirit of the New Model Apple?

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